The present invention generally relates to the field of distributed computing and the field of telecommunications. Specifically, the present invention relates to supervising a distributed platform switch through graphical representations with a graphical user interface (GUI).
Traditionally, telecommunications switches have been represented and maintained through the use of one or more switch-maintenance tools using character-based computer interfaces. Because single-processor switch architectures are being replaced with distributed multi-processor switch architectures, switch-maintenance computer tools using character-based interfaces are particularly problematic. These distributed multi-processor switch architectures can have, for example, processors or processor groups taking on specialized functions having high-speed interconnections. Character-based switch-maintenance interfaces cannot effectively represent the added complexity of these distributed multi-processor switch architectures.
For example, FIG. 1 shows a main screen of a known character-based switch-maintenance interface for a non-distributed communications switch. The main screen shown in FIG. 1 provides alarm information about the switch by setting background color of the alarm fields to red. As shown in FIG. 1, the xe2x80x9cCRITICALxe2x80x9d and xe2x80x9cMAJORxe2x80x9d fields have a red background color.
By selecting a series of multiple-character commands, the maintenance operator can view additional switch information on a separate screen. For example, FIG. 2 shows a screen having the additional information for a non-distributed communications switch from the known character-based switch-maintenance interface. As shown in FIG. 2, the alarm information of the switch processor equipment is displayed in the lower left portion of the screen. The alarm information of the switch processor equipment is conveyed through the background color, text color and text.
This known character-based switch-maintenance interface, however, suffers several shortcomings. First, this known character-based interface does not provide any information on how the switch processor equipment is physically arranged within the switch processor cabinet. For example, as shown in FIG. 2, the switch processor equipment is merely listed in the lower left portion of the character-based interface; the character-based interface does not provide any information on the physical arrangement of the switch processor equipment. The maintenance operator must rely on personal memory and/or access additional resources (e.g., manuals) to determine the physical arrangement of alarming switch processor equipment within its cabinet.
Second, this known character-based interface requires the maintenance operator to enter a series of character-based commands which include an equipment identifier to perform maintenance to that particular piece of switch processor equipment. Such a procedure wastes time, requires additional training of the maintenance operator and leaves room for error by the maintenance operator.
Finally, this known character-based interface requires the maintenance operator to page through multiple output screens to obtain all of the appropriate information required to properly perform maintenance. For example, the output screen illustrated by FIG. 1 indicates to the maintenance operator that an alarm has occurred, and the output screen illustrated by FIG. 2 indicates in which piece of switching equipment the alarm has occurred; finally, the maintenance operator must return to the output screen illustrated by FIG. 1 to input character-based commands using the information provided by the output screen of FIG. 2. Of course, because the appropriate information is located on various multiple output screens, the maintenance operator performing maintenance can make errors when attempting to compile and to act upon the appropriate information.
The present invention uses glyphs to provide status and alarm information on distributed switch processor components so that the physical arrangement of the components is displayed to the maintenance operator. A glyph is a picture-based representation which conveys meaning to the observer.
The present invention allows the maintenance operator to select and act on one or more glyphs to perform maintenance on the distributed switch processor component corresponding to the selected glyphs.
The present invention provides appropriate information to the maintenance operator in such a manner that the maintenance operator can concurrently view all of the appropriate information.
The present invention increases efficiency of the maintenance process, reduces the amount of training required for the maintenance operator, and reduces the possibility of maintenance operator error.
A distributed switch having a set of interconnected distributed switch processors each having a set of components is supervised using a graphical user interface (GUI). State information about a distributed switch processor from the set of distributed switch processors is received. A GUI having a set of glyphs within one output unit is displayed. The output unit can be a single GUI window. Each glyph from the set represents a component of the distributed switch processor. Each glyph from the set indicates the state information about its own component.
The arrangement of the set of glyphs displayed can correspond to a physical layout of the components of the distributed switch processor. A technician located with the physical hardware occasionally needs to perform maintenance on the physical hardware from either the front or the back of the physical hardware cabinet. The arrangement of the plurality of glyphs displayed in the GUI can correspond to a front physical layout of the components of the distributed switch processor within a front of a cabinet containing the components. The arrangement of the plurality of glyphs displayed in the GUI can correspond to a back physical layout of the components of the distributed switch processor within a back of the cabinet containing the components. The front physical layout and the back physical layout can be displayed within a single output unit.
The state information can include an alarm severity and an operational state. Each glyph from the set of glyphs can include a color indicating an alarm severity and a text indicating an operational state. Each glyph from the set of glyphs that corresponds to the same alarm severity includes the same color.
Updated state information about the distributed processor can be received. The GUI can be displayed so that each glyph from the set of glyphs can indicate the updated state information about its own component.